Parent Post

I was quite confused when the "community weight loss" flyer came home and had questions, too.

I don't think it's appropriate for those types of things to be sent home with our children, either. I know that kids in my child's class thought it was a contest for them.  The fact that the flyer was not well put together, with no clear-cut sign of exactly what it was, if someone personally was profiting, etc. added to the questions.  I wondered why it was allowed to come home and who made the decision. 

The Healthy Schools program is a totally different thing, that parents had to sign permission for their children to participate in.  Folks were there in the school lobby months ago, explaining the grant and what the data would be used for.  They had brochures and information that were very clear and professionally done. 

I think it is fine to have a community weight loss program but don't want our students' backpacks used as a way to promote it.  Our principals and teachers have enough on their plates to be doing without distributing promotional leaflets for non-school related activities.

Thanks for bringing it some attention.  It, too, is an important issue that should be addressed.  Is there a district policy on this?

Parent Post

Perhaps you don't have your facts straight.  Schools for HealthyLifestyles is a grant currently given to only 40 schools statewide.  Schools receive $5000 worth of materials for teaching health to students, along with $1,000.  The grant that RU wrote and received has nothing to do with HerbaLife or the parent who is hosting a DC community weight loss challenge. 

The parent went through the facilities usage paperwork to meet in two different school buildings.  The fact that this person sells HerbaLife is completely unrelated to SHL or RU.  So, do you want the DC community to be able to use the school facilities or not?  Who do you want to decide who uses the buildings after hours?  Herbalife/SHL and RU are completely unrelated.

Parent Post

Apparently, Deer Creek Schools has joined in the fight against obesity in school children with their "Schools for Healthy Lifestyles” (SHL).  This program was established in 1997 and is a community-based health promotion program for Oklahoma elementary schools which is sponsored by the Oklahoma City - County Health Department, Oklahoma City Public Schools, Oklahoma County Medical Society, Oklahoma State Department of Education and the Oklahoma State Department of Health .

I agree that teaching healthy lifestyles is greatly needed in today’s world.  However, there is cause for concern as to how Deer Creek Public School (Rose Union) is carrying out this campaign.  How is it that Herbal Life can come into a public school setting and do their so called lame healthy living spiel to group of DC school parents and their families under the umbrella of a school program and at the end, have a table in the back of the room set up with their product to sell on school grounds for personal gain?  What’s next?  Maybe Arbonne can come in a sell their make up and vitamins since their pitch is all natural skin care?  Or, how about Tupperware?  They offer great containers for salads and healthy storage tips for families on the go. 

I don’t think I want our public schools turning into a shopping mall of sorts, even if it is a community based program!   Does anyone out there agree with me with on this?  Is this legal?  Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention this to all you wonderful DC people out there…… just for participating in this program Deer Creek Schools received a $1000 grant. 

http://www.healthyschoolsok.org/

Our Reply

We share some of your concerns in the commercialization of any school district but as business owners we also understand wanting to sell your products when presenting to any organization.  Is it illegal?  No it is not.  Does it open concerns as to who the school district will allow to do this? Yes.  Anytime any organization promotes their products there is an implied endorsement by the school district.  It is imperative that the school district research the companies beforehand to verify the integrity of the products that are being offered.

The lure of the money is hard to resist. A $1000 is a nice piece of change. How did the school find out about the grant.? It is possible that the company doing the presentation brought the program to the school's attention. If that is the case, the school should still research the company and verify that it is an appropriate fit.

While we are on this subject does it bother anybody else that with the obesity problem that it is not mandatory for Middle School and High School students to participate in any form of Physical Education in Oklahoma?  Shouldn’t it be mandatory?  To borrow a line from the cartoon strip Calvin and Hobbes, we know that some kids view PE as ‘state sponsored terrorism’ but wouldn’t it be in their best interest to have some sort of physical activity?  It just would seem that there would be a need to teach kids to be active in some sort of activity.